From January 19th to 23rd, the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting 2026, themed "The Spirit of Dialogue," was held here. Nearly 3,000 representatives from over 130 countries and regions across various fields exchanged views and engaged in dialogue on important topics in the economic, geopolitical, and technological fields. Participants agreed that China's economy achieved remarkable results in 2025, demonstrating strong resilience and vitality. China's commitment to high-quality development and expanding high-level opening-up has injected valuable confidence and rare certainty into the global economy.
In a discussion on the future development of electric vehicles, Li Ke, Executive Vice President of BYD, stated that electric vehicles are becoming an innovative platform integrating technologies such as autonomous driving and artificial intelligence. The success of related industries in China is attributed to clear and stable long-term policies. China's firm commitment to carbon reduction targets has enabled the manufacturing industry to fully dedicate itself to innovative development.
"Through technological empowerment, China is helping other regions around the world accelerate their green transformation," said Sebastian Bakup, Executive Director of the World Economic Forum. In the photovoltaic power generation sector, thanks to Chinese technology, the cost of solar power generation has been significantly reduced. China is also actively promoting the development of energy storage technology, playing an important role in areas such as electric vehicle development.
Li Ke believes that intense competition within the Chinese market is equally crucial. She pointed out that competition in China's new energy vehicle market is not only among traditional automakers, but also includes a large number of new entrants with IT and internet backgrounds. These companies have no historical baggage, are skilled in software, system architecture, and user experience, and have quickly broken down existing boundaries after entering the automotive industry, activating the innovation vitality of the entire industry.
"The automotive industry was originally a very traditional, even somewhat dull, industry, but in China, it has become one of the most innovative industries, surpassing even the mobile phone and traditional IT industries in some aspects," said Li Ke. This cross-industry competition has driven the automotive industry to upgrade from a single manufacturing sector to a comprehensive industry integrating hardware, software, algorithms, and system capabilities.
Regarding innovation capabilities, BYD's engineering culture is considered a core support. Li Ke explained that BYD's R&D personnel account for more than 10%, with approximately 120,000 R&D engineers. The company provides ample space for technological exploration, encouraging engineers to continuously challenge limits and break boundaries. Under this system, BYD has not only continuously iterated on batteries, electric drives, and vehicle architecture, but has also developed a 3,000-horsepower pure electric vehicle and set a world record of 496.22 km/h.
The automotive industry in 2025 can be described as a rollercoaster ride. China achieved rapid market growth; Europe, under pressure from environmental regulations, had to reluctantly promote electric vehicles; conversely, the US market froze due to the termination of electric vehicle support policies, making it increasingly difficult for automakers to profit. All indications suggest that the industry chaos may worsen further in 2026.
A Review of Major Global Markets: Who's Stronger and Who's Weaker?
The US auto market has stagnated. High car prices have led to a decline in consumer willingness to buy, compounded by tariffs imposed by the Trump administration on imported vehicles, resulting in a projected decrease in sales rather than an increase. With the withdrawal of electric vehicle support policies, companies like General Motors have incurred huge losses in their electric vehicle businesses alone.
European automakers are caught in a dilemma: a weak economy but forced to sell cars. Environmental regulations require automakers to significantly increase electric vehicle sales, but high prices have resulted in electric vehicles being more popular than commercially viable. Automakers have been forced to reduce sales of gasoline-powered vehicles and aggressively promote electric vehicles, ultimately leading to a continued overall sales slump.
However, with the gradual launch of lower-priced electric vehicles and the entry of Chinese automakers, the market is showing signs of a slow recovery. But in the short term, a return to the 2019 sales level of 18 million vehicles remains a long way off.
The era of rapid growth in the Chinese auto market has ended. Affected by the economic downturn, consumer demand for cars has shrunk, and the growth in market sales in 2025 will largely depend on government subsidies. The subsidy effect is expected to gradually fade by 2026, and market sales are likely to stagnate. In contrast, smart cars equipped with cutting-edge technologies such as autonomous driving are continuing to attract consumer attention.
